Open Drive Insurance
Opening the roads in other cars.
If you have ever handed your car keys to a family member, friend, or neighbour and wondered whether they are actually covered to drive, you are not alone. Open drive insurance is one of those features that sounds straightforward until you need to use it, and then suddenly everyone has a different opinion about how it works. This guide breaks down what open drive cover actually means for Irish drivers, how it differs from driving other cars, and why it matters when your car is sitting in the garage waiting for a new clutch while you eye up that shiny courtesy car on the forecourt.
What is Open Drive Insurance in Ireland
Open drive insurance is an optional extra on many Irish car insurance policies that allows people who are not specifically named on your policy to drive your car, provided they meet the insurer’s conditions and have your permission. Think of it as a flexible guest list for your vehicle rather than a strict VIP entry system.
The exact requirements depend on your insurer, but the typical acceptance criteria include holding a full Irish, UK, or EU licence, falling within a certain age band (often somewhere between 25 and 70), and having a clean or relatively clean driving license with limited penalty points. Some insurers also look at claims history and may require that the driver has not had more than one claim in the past five years.
It is worth noting that this cover applies to your insured car rather than following the person around like a superhero cape. Your policy does not suddenly transform you into someone who can jump into any vehicle in Ireland and be covered. The open drive feature specifically lets other qualifying drivers get behind the wheel of your private car under your motor insurance policy.
Open Drive Versus Driving Other Cars
Here is where things get a little tangled, because open drive and driving other cars are two separate features that Irish drivers often mix up. Understanding the difference could save you from an awkward conversation with a claims handler down the line.
Open drive is about other people driving your insured vehicle with your blessing. You remain the policyholder, and the cover extends to whoever is behind the wheel of your car as long as they fit the insurer’s rules.
Driving other cars, sometimes called DOC, is a feature that allows you to drive a car you do not own, usually with the owner’s permission. If your policy includes this, you would typically only have third party cover when driving someone else’s car, meaning damage to that vehicle would not be covered. This is not standard on all insurance policies in Ireland, and many insurers restrict it to drivers over a certain age who hold a full licence. There is no automatic right to this cover, and you must check your schedule to see if it applies.
The confusion arises when someone assumes their open driving feature lets them borrow a friend’s car and be covered. In reality, those are two entirely separate things. Your open drive extension helps others drive your car. It does not help you drive everyone else’s car in the country. Mixing these up can leave you without valid insurance at precisely the wrong moment.
Who Can Drive Your Car Under Open Drive Cover
Each Irish insurer sets its own criteria for open drive cover, so what works with one company may not apply with another. Generally speaking, an experienced driver who holds a full Irish, UK, or EU licence and falls within the insurer’s age range will meet the basic requirements. Aviva, for example, typically requires drivers to be between 25 and 70 with a full licence, while other providers may use slightly different age bands.
Beyond age and licence type, insurers often look at penalty points, claims history, and driving convictions. If the person you want to let drive your car has accumulated more than a certain number of penalty points, has an open claim, or has been disqualified from driving in the past five years, they may not qualify under your open drive feature.
Some policies also exclude certain occupations or higher risk drivers. The specific terms are always laid out in your policy booklet and schedule, which is why reading those documents is genuinely useful rather than just good advice your mother would give.
If you have a mystery cousin who only appears when there is a free car to borrow and a scenic route to Wexford, you would be wise to check they actually fit the insurer’s rules before they set off. A quick phone call to your broker beats a long phone call to your claims department.
What Happens If Someone Has a Crash in Your Car
If a permitted driver using open drive has an accident in Ireland, any valid claim is normally made on your car insurance policy. This is because the insurance follows the vehicle rather than the driver. The claim goes through your insurer, and the process is the same as if you had been driving yourself.
Here is the part that catches some people off guard: if the claim is paid, it is your claims bonus that may be affected, not the occasional driver’s. Your carefully built up claims discount could take a hit even though you were nowhere near the car at the time. Some insurers offer protected no claims bonus options, but this is something to check before an incident occurs rather than after.
The level of coverage in the event of an accident will be whatever you have on your policy. If you have comprehensive cover, the driver benefits from comprehensive cover. If you only have third party fire and theft, that is what applies. There is no magical upgrade when a friend takes the wheel.
Excess also works the same way. The policy excess you agreed to when you took out the cover is the amount that applies regardless of who was driving. If you set a higher excess to reduce your premium, that decision still stands when someone else is behind the wheel.
If an accident does happen, report it to your insurer promptly and give honest details about who was driving and the circumstances. Insurers are used to dealing with open drive claims, and following the claims process properly will make everything smoother.
Borrowing a Car and How Open Drive Really Works
A common misunderstanding is thinking that because you have open drive on your own policy, you can borrow any car and be covered. Unfortunately, that is not how it works. Open drive cover attaches to your insured car and policy, not to you personally. It does not follow you around like a loyal dog.
If you borrow a car from a friend or family member in Ireland, you are usually relying on their policy and any open drive feature they have. Your own policy stays at home with your own car.
Before driving a borrowed vehicle, confirm with the owner that you are genuinely covered. Ideally, have a calm and friendly glance at their insurance document or app before the keys leave their hand. Asking to see proof of cover is not awkward; what is awkward is trying to explain to a Garda why you have no valid insurance.
If neither policy properly covers the situation and you drive anyway, you could be on the road without valid cover. This is an offence in Ireland and can lead to prosecution, penalty points, fines, and even vehicle seizure. The borrowed car suddenly becomes a lot less attractive, no matter how nice the heated seats are.
Courtesy Cars from the Garage and Why Open Drive Matters
When your car is in for repair or servicing, you might be offered a courtesy car to keep you mobile. This is a common arrangement at dealerships and garages across Dublin, including at Gerry Caffrey Motors in Terenure. The question is: who insures that courtesy car?
In Ireland, courtesy cars can be insured in different ways. Sometimes the garage covers the vehicle under its own motor trade policy. Sometimes the arrangement is that the garage provides third party cover only, and you need to rely on your own insurer if you want comprehensive cover for the temporary vehicle.
This is where people occasionally trip up. Open drive on your own policy does not automatically extend to a courtesy car owned by the garage. Remember, open drive is designed for other people driving your insured car, not for you driving a completely different commercial vehicle belonging to someone else.
If you are collecting a courtesy car, the safest approach is to phone your Irish insurer from the forecourt if necessary. Ask whether cover can be temporarily transferred or extended to the courtesy car, and get confirmation of the level of cover in writing, such as an email. This takes a few minutes but could save you significant hassle.
There is a certain type of optimism that leads someone to enthusiastically drive a shiny new courtesy car home, only to discover later they were never properly covered. An awkward five minute phone call at the start is far better than an awkward claim later on.
Open Drive and Visiting Your Suzuki Dealer in Dublin
At Gerry Caffrey Motors in Terenure, customers regularly drop off their car, Suzuki and all other models! for servicing, diagnostics, or repairs. During these visits, questions sometimes arise about who is insured to move or test the car.
A reputable Irish Suzuki dealer will have its own motor trade insurance to cover staff moving customer vehicles for servicing, test drives, and road tests. This cover is separate from any open drive feature on the customer’s policy. You do not need to worry about whether the technician fits your insurer’s age requirements when they take your car for a post service road test.
Customers living in areas like Terenure, Rathfarnham, Templeogue, and nearby often ask if a family member can collect the car and drive it home after servicing. And this is where open drive on the customer’s policy may help, provided that family member meets the insurer’s rules. A spouse or adult child who qualifies under your open drive cover can pick up the car without any drama.
However, you should always check your own policy before sending a relative or helpful neighbour to collect the new vehicle from the dealership. Assuming everyone over a certain age is magically insured is a risky hobby. It can be tempting to let every keen volunteer test your newly serviced Suzuki, but your insurer may not share your enthusiasm for an expanding driver roster.
Practical Checks Before Letting Someone Else Drive Your Car
Before handing over your keys, there are a few things worth confirming. First, check that your motor insurance policy actually includes open drive cover. Not all policies do, and some require you to add it as an optional extra at a small additional cost. Ask whomever is borrowing your car if they have open drive on their policy, that way if your car policy doesn't offer the option of open drive their policy can cover them whilst they drive yours.
Second, confirm that the person who wants to drive your car meets all the conditions. This usually means checking their age, the type of driving license they hold, how long they have held it, and whether they have any penalty points or convictions that might exclude them. These full details are found in your policy booklet or schedule.
Third, verify they hold a valid licence and are not disqualified from driving in Ireland. A driver number check might seem excessive for a quick trip to the shops, but it is better than discovering problems after the event. It's not a time to be shy about asking these questions regardless of relationship, it's a legal requirement for driving in Ireland. If in doubt, check it out is the saying. And you don't want to run the risk that they borrow your car and are involved in an RTC or other incident on the road. This could lead to a mess that did not need to happen at the least or lead to you having no car at the worst.
Keeping a copy of your insurance cert and disc details handy, perhaps on your mobile phone, means you can check cover quickly if a last minute driver change is needed for a trip to school or work. If a potential driver goes very quiet when you ask about their licence or penalty points, it may be kinder to offer them a lift than your driver seat.
Costs Conditions and When Open Drive Might Suit You
Irish insurers may charge extra to add open drive depending on factors like the driver age range, your car’s value, your location, and your claims history. The minimum premium for adding this cover varies between providers, and sometimes open drive may not be available at all on certain motor policies.
Open drive often makes sense in multi driver households where multiple drivers share a family car. It is also useful when adult children occasionally need to use a parent’s car without being permanently added as named drivers. If you frequently lend your car to different people who all meet the insurer criteria, open drive offers convenience that would otherwise require constant policy amendments.
On the other hand, if you have one regular extra driver whose details can be fully assessed for pricing, adding them as a named driver may work out more economical. This is particularly true for young drivers or new drivers who are building up their safe driving record, as insurers can price them individually rather than applying blanket open drive rules.
When deciding, compare the cost of adding open drive to the cost of adding one or two specific named drivers. Ask your insurer or broker which option works better for your exact circumstances. Many policies offer an online discount for adding features through the website, so check there too.
Open drive is most useful if people genuinely share the car. It is less useful if the only extra driver in the household is the family dog, who still has not passed the theory test and shows no interest in doing so.
Key Takeaways for Irish Drivers
Open drive insurance is about other drivers using your insured car under your policy. It does not give you the right to drive every other car in Ireland, no matter how confidently you approach a friend’s vehicle.
Borrowing cars and using courtesy cars from garages or dealerships in Dublin always requires a specific check of who is providing the insurance and what level of cover applies. Never assume you are covered simply because the garage handed you keys with a smile.
Irish insurers impose clear written conditions on age, licence type, penalty points, and claims history for any open drive feature. Guessing those rules is a risky approach that rarely pays off.
Spending a few minutes reading your policy or calling your insurer before you hand someone your keys will usually be far less painful than sorting out uninsured damage after the fact. The Central Bank of Ireland regulates insurance providers, and they all publish their specific terms for features like open drive. A quick check of your documents, or a friendly call to your broker, puts you in control.
If you are dropping your car into Gerry Caffrey Motors for servicing or collecting a courtesy car while yours is being repaired, take a moment to confirm your insurance position. It is a small investment of time that keeps you on the right side of the law and away from unexpected bills.